During a recent 21-day meditation challenge, I was asked to reflect on the following parable:

There was a king who said to the court sages: “I have a ring with one of the finest diamonds in the world. I want to hide a message under the stone that can be useful in a situation of extreme despair. I will give the ring to my heirs and I want it to serve faithfully. Think of what kind of message will be there. It must be very short to fit in the ring.”

The sages knew how to write treatises, but could not express themselves in one short sentence. They thought and thought, but did not come up with anything. The king complained about the failure of his venture to a faithful old servant who raised him from infancy and was part of the family. The old man said to him:

“I’m not a sage and I’m not educated, but I know such a message. Over many years spent in the palace, I’ve met a lot of people. Once I served a visiting mystic and he gave me this message. I ask that you don’t read it now. Save it under the stone of your ring and open it only when there’s no way out.”

After some time, enemies attacked the country and the king lost a great battle. He fled on his horse and his enemies pursued him. He was alone and his enemies were many. He rode to the end of the road and there was a huge, sheer cliff before him. If he fell there, it would be the end. He could not go back, as his enemies were approaching. He had heard the clatter of their horses’ hooves. He had no way out and was in complete despair.

And then he remembered the ring. He opened it and found an inscription: “This too shall pass.”

After reading the message, he felt that everything was quiet. He no longer heard his pursuers’ horses. Apparently they had become lost and went in the wrong direction.

The king was filled with gratitude to the servant and the unknown mystic. He closed the ring and set out on the road. He gathered his army and returned home. On the day he returned to the palace, they had a great feast for all the people – they loved their king and he was happy and proud.

The old servant came up to him and said softly: “Even in this moment, look at the message again.”

The king said, “Now I am a winner, people are celebrating my return. I’m not in despair, not in a hopeless situation.”

“Listen to this old servant,” the servant answered. “The message works not only in moments when everything is bad, but also in moments of victory.”

The king opened the ring and read: “This too shall pass.”

And again he felt a silence fall over him, although he was in the midst of a noisy, dancing crowd. His pride dissolved as he understood the message and was a wise man.

And then the old man said to the king: “Do you remember all that has happened to you? No thing and no feeling is permanent. As night changes day, so moments of joy and despair replace each other. Accept them as the nature of things, as part of life.”

As you reflect on this story, what does it mean to you?